Jaune Quick-to-See Smith dies, Texas officials seize Sally Mann photos, and more top Southwest art news headlines for January and February 2025.
News
Death of Artist Jaune Quick-to-See Smith at Eighty-Five Inspires Tributes Across the U.S. Cultural Landscape:
Jaune Quick-To-See Smith (Salish member of the Confederated Salish and Kootenai Nation, Montana), who died on January 24 of pancreatic cancer at her home in Corrales, New Mexico, was the subject of obituaries from The New York Times, Artforum, Hyperallergic, and many other outlets.
Texas Officials Seize Sally Mann Photos from Fort Worth Museum Amid Controversy Over Imagery:
In early January, authorities in Texas seized photographs by Sally Mann from the Modern Art Museum of Fort Worth following complaints that the images are harmful to minors, prompting a criminal investigation and reigniting debates over artistic freedom and censorship.
Arizona Governor Pushes $7 Million Plan to Accelerate Repatriation of Native American Remains:
Arizona Governor Katie Hobbs proposed $7 million in state funding to speed up the repatriation of Native American human remains and artifacts in mid-January, citing institutional delays and a lack of financial support, while tribal leaders and museum officials acknowledged systemic challenges in compliance and funding.
Also:
- The Heard Museum in Phoenix has raised its newly conserved Friendship Totem (1976) by Nisga’a artist Norman Tait.
- The Heard has reopened its sixty-seven-year-old gift shop, supporting $46 million in annual economic impact for Indigenous artists.
- After years of financial and facilities challenges, Denver’s Kirkland Museum of Fine & Decorative Art will merge with the Denver Art Museum.
- The Center for Fine Art Photography in Fort Collins shuttered on January 31, naming the Covid-19 pandemic and “shifting priorities of the Fort Collins arts community” as key factors.
- The Marfa Invitational will expand to Santa Fe with a new Tesuque event in October.
- Designer and entrepreneur Amy Denet (Diné) has announced the March 1 closure of her Santa Fe clothing store 4Kinship, and the launch of her new foundation Indigenous Futures 4Ever.
- The National Hispanic Cultural Center’s Visual Art Museum in Albuquerque is closed until further notice due to a water leak.
- Wise Fool New Mexico was evicted from its Santa Fe headquarters and has shifted its focus to a future “without a physical home.”
- Performance Santa Fe closed in mid-January after eighty-eight years, citing broader arts industry challenges.
- Taos gallery The Wright Contemporary shut down on December 22, with gallery director Ann Landi announcing that benefactor Ira Wright had “mysteriously slashed the original trust in half” in his will.
- The Satellite Art Show is returning to Austin for South by Southwest 2025 in March with Satellite Ranch exhibitions and installations.
- The Utah Arts Alliance has continued its long-term Art Castle project, which will restore a historic 15th Ward church building in Salt Lake City, by inviting new community input.
Grants and Awards
Mellon Foundation Launches $25 Million Fund to Support U.S.–Mexico Border Artists:
Southwestern arts organizations MOCA Tucson, La Semilla Food Center in New Mexico, and Azul Arena in Texas, are among the inaugural recipients of flexible grants from the Frontera Culture Fund.
Heard Museum Receives $2.5 Million Grant to Expand Native American Spiritual Engagement:
The Heard Museum in Phoenix accepted a substantial endowment from Lilly Endowment Inc. to further explore and share the role of spiritual knowledge in Native American creative practices.
Ruth Arts Awards $50,000 Grants to Southwest Arts Organizations:
Ruth Arts’s three-year-old initiative Core Grants has awarded operational support grants to the Institute of American Indian Arts Foundation in Santa Fe and Black Cube Nomadic Museum in Denver.
Also:
- The Andy Warhol Foundation has awarded Visual Arts grants to SITE Santa Fe, the Georgia O’Keeffe Museum, and other Southwestern arts organizations.
- Numerous arts organizations across the Southwest will receive 2025 NEA grants, including the Flagstaff Arts Council, the Roswell Artist-in-Residence Foundation, and the Salt Lake Arts Council Foundation.
- Reno-based artist Iyana Esters was honored with a 2025 Nevada Heritage Fellowship for Traditional Arts.
Leadership Changes and Appointments
Santa Fe Art Institute Names Tocarra Thomas New Executive Director:
Tocarra Thomas steps in to replace Jamie Blosser, who will work closely with SFAI as the new director and CEO of the Midtown Arts and Design Alliance. Thomas brings her extensive experience as an artist, film programmer, and arts administrator to lead SFAI in its fortieth year.
Cinema Director of CCA Santa Fe Resigns as New Board Chair Arrives:
Justin Clifford Rhody has resigned from his position as cinema director at the Center for Contemporary Arts in Santa Fe, and the organization has appointed David N. Meyer as its new board chairman in a continued effort to stabilize following its financial struggles.
Nikolas Huebler Joins CCI as Program Manager for New Community Revitalization Tax Credit in Colorado
Nikolas Huebler is the new program manager for the Community Revitalization Tax Credit program at Colorado Creative Industries, which is part of the state’s Office of Economic Development & International Trade. The initiative offers up to $50 million in tax credits to support creative industry projects across Colorado.
Also:
- Monique Fragua (Pueblo of Jemez) is the new president and CEO of Albuquerque’s Indian Pueblo Cultural Center, becoming the first woman to hold the position.
- Artists and educators Karl Duncan (Mandan, Hidatsa, Arikara, and San Carlos Apache) and Lily Hope (Tlingit) have been appointed to the Institute of American Indian Arts Board of Trustees.
- Stephanie Stewart (Navajo and Kiowa), a 2019 IAIA graduate, joins the Museum of Contemporary Native Arts as curatorial assistant.
- The Museum Resources Division of the New Mexico Department of Cultural Affairs welcomes Lila Pickus as head of exhibit services and Kurt Beardsley as supervisor of fabrication and preparation.
